New Technology: Handheld Device May Help Reduce Hospital Medication Errors

In a recent study, researchers found that improper dosages account for nearly 40% of medication errors. Additionally, researchers found that poor communication between health care professionals was the underlying cause of 15.8% of prescription errors. I read an article about an interesting piece of new technology that helps improve dose accuracy and communication between care providers.

The Intellidot Corporation has released the wireless IntelliDot Bedside Medication Administration (“IntelliDot BMA”) which will help eliminate hospital medication errors. The handheld device reads a barcode attached a patient’s wrist and provides the health care professional with all of the patient’s relevant health information. At an instant, a nurse or doctor will know all of the patient’s prescriptions, their required dosages, and the proper way to administer the medication. Additionally, in a hospital equipped with a computerized pharmacy, a doctor can electronically submit a prescription to the hospital’s pharmacy, and the pharmacy can transmit the prescription along with administration instructions to the IntelliDot BMA. Under this system, a hospital can eliminate the need for handwritten prescriptions and therefore greatly reduce the risk of errors caused by a physician’s poor handwriting or the use of improper medication abbreviations.

Although Maryland medication attorneys are excited that such technology exists, electronic measures alone cannot reduce medication errors. If you or a loved one has been injured by a medication error, contact Lebowitz & Mzhen, LLC for a free consultation.

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